Dandelion in the Winter
by LucyEverdeen28
Summary: Set after Mockingjay.  Oneshot for Valentine's Day.  Katniss is still dealing with the horrors of the past and finds that she can't move on with life, but a visit from Peeta convinces her otherwise.


**Basically, this is what I think Valentine's Day would've been like for Katniss and Peeta a year after the events of Mockingjay. The story is written from Katniss's POV and is a oneshot. **

**Initially I wasn't sure if the Capitol and the districts would celebrate Valentine's Day, but I decided to give it a shot anyway and put my own twist on it. Review please? :)**

I wrap my coat around my shoulders and step outside, peering at the empty street around me. Good. No one's here. I don't feel like having to make an effort to be polite once more.

Then I realize there's no chill. I take a step back inside, shrug my jacket off, and hang it on a hook before going out again. It's been a mild winter, and even though it's mid-February, it already feels like spring is coming. Prim would have liked weather like this. She never liked winter much.

It's been months, but thinking of her still makes tears spring up in my eyes. A dull ache spreads through my heart. When will the pain start lessening?

Everyone tells me I need to accept what's happened and move on, but I can't. I want to cling to my past and my family, but at the same time I want to erase the horrors that I can't get out of my head. I can't let go. I'll fall apart if I do.

I have no one on this earth left to trust. Besides Peeta. But he's dealing with the aftermath too. I think he's moving forward better than I am, but he still gets those spells where he just freezes and can't move, and he comes to me asking what's real.

I avoid him as much as I can. I don't want to add to his stress. No, that's not true. I don't want to be around him because it brings back so many memories––some good, some bad. And memories of him are even more painful than memories of Prim or Finnick or Rue.

Because I don't know what to do about him. Peeta has been a part of my life for so long, but since the Capitol hijacked him I just don't know what to do. And okay, maybe he's healing and getting better, but the truth is I'm scared and a little too nervous to face him.

I deal with things better when I'm alone. That's just the way it is, and I'm not ready to open up my heart to Peeta again. Not yet. It's better if I keep myself closed in like a shell. Alone.

Then Peeta appears, walking down the street, something held behind his back.

Of course, he doesn't agree that I should shut people out. He tries to seek me out often. So it shouldn't be a surprise that he's coming down the street now, but my heart skips a beat anyway.

"Katniss," Peeta calls out. A smile breaks out across his face. He waves with one hand and quickens his pace to join me. "What are you doing today?"

"Not much. I was going to go hunting," I say, wondering why he asked me that. It's a strange question––we never really make small talk; just get straight to the point. At least, I do.

"Well, you know what today is, right?"

I think for a moment but come up with nothing. "No. Someone's birthday?" I know it's not mine or Peeta's, but that's about it.

He laughs and leans against a fence. "Nope, not that. It's Valentine's Day."

"Valentine's Day…" I ponder for a brief second. I know that Valentine's Day was a popular holiday in the past, and that the Capitol celebrates it, but no one in the districts has ever really had reason to celebrate it.

"I know it's been hard for us to stay friends after what the Capitol did," Peeta says. "And it's okay if you need time to get through it all. But it's just––don't do it all alone, okay?"

My throat has gone dry. I know he's right, and that I need to get a grip on my life and let other people give me a hand. But it's not his words that reach me. It's the gentle concern on his face, the worry written all over it. It's just like Peeta––never fearing for himself, but always caring for others.

"And I know we're not a couple or anything, but we're good friends," Peeta says, and then frowns. "Well, I don't know if that's exactly right either, but we know each other so well and we've been through so much together, so…"

I force myself to swallow.

"I got you this." And he pulls out what was behind his back––a handful of dandelions. "I saw them and it made me think of you. They started growing early since it's been such a warm winter."

I take the flowers and manage to speak. "That's a good sign. Maybe spring will come soon."

"I think it will." Peeta looks straight into my eyes. "And spring always brings rebirth. A new start for everything."

I know he's not talking about flowers anymore. He's talking about us. Because he cares about me. And he's wondering if he still has a chance.

I realize how well I know him. How I can always guess what he's thinking, and yet somehow he still succeeds in surprising me now and then. How, if I had to choose someone to spend the rest of my life with, it would always be him.

I'm shocked at my thinking, at all these sudden realizations. But I know I need to open my heart up to him, and maybe in that process it will finally bring healing.

What if Peeta's right about spring coming early? Maybe that will be the time I finally begin to let go of the past.

I don't need to wait for spring, though. It can happen now. Right now, as Peeta is staring into my eyes, twisting his hands, waiting for my response.

Cupping the dandelions very gently in my hands, I lean over and kiss him on the cheek. "Thank you," I said softly. "I needed that very much."

And then I turn and head off back to my house, a spring in my step that I didn't even know was still in me.

"Katniss," a stunned Peeta finally calls as I near the door. "Would…would you like to stop by later this week? I have some new paintings if you'd like to see them."

A small smile lifts my lips, because I know that it's not about the paintings. It's about us spending time together. Growing back together. "I'd love that," I call out before I close the door. "See you tomorrow."

And I walk into the kitchen, fill a pitcher with water, and place the dandelions in it. "Miss you, Prim," I whisper. "I know you'd like these flowers. I know you'd be telling me to spend time with Peeta so we don't have to face the nightmares alone. And you're right. So I'm going to start over."

Sitting by the table, head propped up on my crossed hands, I stare at the bright yellow of the dandelions. Spring is coming, and with it the promise that life can go on.

**So, what are your thoughts? I'm especially curious as to whether Katniss was in character. It was hard for me, judging how she would act and think. Still, I hope the story made you smile. I know it's more serious in tone than would be expected for a V-day fic, but I thought it suited what the characters were going through. Anyway, thanks for reading and please review!**


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